Happy New Year! I hope you all enjoyed the holiday season. Last year was a remarkable for me and I’m pretty sure the new year will be even better. I have some amazing opportunities and events happening this year along with some great content for the blog so stay tuned! This recipe is inspired by my family tradition. The delicious aromas of soul food permeating through our house during the new year. Black eyed peas were always one of my favorite holiday side dishes that my grandmother would prepare. The Black eyed pea is said to have originated in West Africa and was bought into the southern U.S. during the slave trade. Most southerners regard the bean as symbolizing prosperity and luck going into a new year. My grandmother would switch the proteins she added to the cooking process year by year, but it mostly consisted of ham hocks, smoked turkey, or bacon. She always added collard greens to the meal to complete it. This version I use smoked beef sausage as the protein and paired it with some wine-braised quail (not a traditional thing, but really yummy). Enjoy!

For the peas:

1 lb dried black eyed peas, soaked overnight in cold water and rinsed
1 lb smoked beef sausage, diced
1 large onion , chopped
1 stalk celery , chopped
1 small red bell pepper, chopped
2 tsp granulated garlic
1 tsp cayenne pepper
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
1 Tbsp creole seasoning
8 cups chicken stock
3-4 cups collard greens, chopped
1 Tbsp tabasco sauce (optional)
2-3 Tbsp canola oil
Kosher salt
Black pepper

For the Quail:

4 semi- boneless quail
1 shallot, minced
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup low sodium chicken stock
1 cup dry white wine
2 Tbsp canola oil

Directions:

Heat 2-3 tablespoons of canola in a large heavy bottomed pot over medium high heat. Add the cubed sausage and sauté until browned. Remove the sausage and set aside. Add the onions, celery, and bell pepper to the pot and saute until softened. Stir in the peas, chicken stock, garlic powder, creole seasoning, cayenne, bay leaf, thyme and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove the bay leaf and thyme branches. Add the collard greens and tabasco sauce and simmer an additional 15-20 minutes or until the greens are tender.

Preheat your oven at 350F. Season the quail with a light dusting of creole seasoning. In a cast iron skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of oil over medium high heat. Add the quail and sear until browned, about 1-2 minutes, then remove and set aside. Place the shallots into the pan and sauté until soft, about 5 minutes then add the garlic and cook for one minute. Pour the wine in the pan to deglaze it, scraping up any bits stuck to the pan, then add the chicken stock and bring it to a boil and reduce the liquid by half. Add the quail to the pan and place in the oven for 20 minutes. Remove the quail from the oven and serve with black eyed peas.